Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 4,618 Shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA)

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. (NYSE:MAA - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 143,909 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 4,618 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.12% of Mid-America Apartment Communities worth $22,867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities by 3,071.4% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 222 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities during the third quarter worth about $37,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 82.4% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 239 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in Mid-America Apartment Communities by 305.1% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 316 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. 93.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MAA shares. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $174.00 to $173.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from $139.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Raymond James raised shares of Mid-America Apartment Communities from a "market perform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $175.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America raised Mid-America Apartment Communities from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $144.00 to $189.00 in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on Mid-America Apartment Communities from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mid-America Apartment Communities presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $161.64.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of MAA stock traded down $3.33 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $158.01. 341,892 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 751,978. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. has a 12-month low of $120.32 and a 12-month high of $167.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.88. The company's 50-day moving average price is $157.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.77.

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.18 by ($1.20). Mid-America Apartment Communities had a net margin of 23.84% and a return on equity of 8.38%. The business had revenue of $551.13 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $548.53 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Mid-America Apartment Communities Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 15th were given a dividend of $1.47 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 15th. This represents a $5.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. Mid-America Apartment Communities's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 132.73%.

About Mid-America Apartment Communities

MAA, an S&P 500 company, is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on delivering full-cycle and superior investment performance for shareholders through the ownership, management, acquisition, development and redevelopment of quality apartment communities primarily in the Southeast, Southwest and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.